Settling in the Americas for three reasons: Wealth, spreading Christianity, and Escaping Persecution.
Spain
Spain had slow development in its colonies due to a lack of minerals and native opposition.
Spain took Florida, Saint Augustine, in 1565, as the oldest city.
Florida sucks - slow development due to lack of resources, tons of diseases and hurricanes.
Other key colonies were New Mexico and Arizona (Capital at Santa Fe in 1610)
Texas: Grew as Spain resisted the French Exploration
California - Missions were established along the coast for catholicism
France
Loved the fur trade and heavily relied on rivers as a result.
The first colony of Quebec was founded in 1608 by Samuel De Champlain. In 1673, Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette explored the upper Mississippi. In 1718, New Orleans was established.
The French traders married the natives so they could get trading rights with the native tribes and their families. An example of this would be their relations with the Ojibwe.
The Natives benefitted the French because they were skilled in the process of preparing beaver pelts for market and the French benefitted the Indians in introducing iron cookware and farming tools as well as manufactured cloth.
Dutch
The Kingdom of the Netherlands sponsored many voyages.
The Dutch, also seeking a water-based passage through the Americas, sent Henry Hudson who founded the Hudson River and established New Amsterdam (NYC).
The Dutch were different from Spain because although they were protestant, they weren’t interested in converting the natives to christianity.
British
Due to Demographics, they liked to farm and claim land from the Natives
The British population was booming beyond the economy, and poor and landless people, due to the enclosure movement, were attracted to opportunities in America.
The English colonizers set out as family groups to establish new homes.
2.3 The Regions of British Colonies
Colonies developed based on geography, resources, and climate.
3 types of colonies:
Corporate - For-profit operated by joint stock companies.
Royal - Under direct rule of the king's government.
Proprietary - Ruled by Individuals, granted right by the king
Unlike Spain and France, England was used to representative government, so colonies grew independently.
Early colonies
Jamestown was the first permanent settlement in Virginia in 1607. Originally a corporate colony, they moved under royal rule later.
Huge Swamp area, and settlers were unaccustomed to survival.
Lots of Native conflicts as well.
John Smith hauled them off their asses and they survived through a tough tough winter of 1609-1610 (Starving time)
John Rolfe and Pocohontas (who was 14) bred a new tobacco strain, which brought huge profits.
The labor in this colony was done by Indentured Servants-folks who couldn’t afford the passage across the Atlantic and so they signed a 7-year labor contract in which they worked to pay off their voyage fees and when finished they were free.
Became a royal colony later due to its struggling survival.
The Massachusetts colonies were usually founded for religious freedom. Almost all of these are royal colonies.
Started by English Protestants who dissented from Anglicans. Most were Calvinists
Calvinists: Heavengoers were predestined.
Plymouth - Pilgrims who were radical dissenters (Separatists).
Massachusetts Bay - More Moderate dissenters (Puritans)
John Winthrop led a thousand Puritans and founded Boston.
Great Migration - Migration of Puritans to Massachusetts Bay.
New England
Due to very harsh Puritan intolerance, many dissenting colonies formed
Halfway Covenant - Allowed people without religious conversion to participate in church as partial members.
Rhode Island - A corporate colony
Roger Williams was banished from Boston for teachings that were beyond the church's authority. He fled south and founded Providence, which was later Rhode Island.
Anne Hutchinson was banished for her religious views. She and her followers founded Portsmouth, which also became part of Rhode Island.
Rhode Island became a refuge colony for many due to its tolerance.
Connecticut - A proprietary colony
Found by Thomas Hooker, and Boston Puritans unhappy with Mass bay Authorities.
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut - 1st constitution of America, which was written.
New Hampshire - Royal Colony
Split from MassBayy to increase King's Control.
Middle Colonies
Good fertile soil that attracted diverse people, tolerant, with good harbors.
Also known as the Chesapeake Colonies.
Most funding came from joint stock companies, and indentured servitude was more common than slavery
Had a representative government which were dominated by the elite members of the society.
New York - Royal Colony.
Taken from the Netherlands, but Dutch settlers were still treated well
New Jersey - Royal Colony that split from New York
Attracted settlers through cheap land, religious freedom, and an assembly.
Sold their interests to a group of Quakers.
Pennsylvania - Proprietary colony
William Penn - A Quaker who founded this as a refuge for Quakers and minority religions.
Very liberal ideas like: Frame of government (Representative assembly for all landowners), and Charter of liberties (Worship freedom and unblocked immigration)
Delaware - A Proprietary colony that split from Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania's lower 3 counties.
Maryland - Proprietary colony, Haven for Catholics
Protestants in the assembly outnumbered Catholics, so the Act of Toleration was formed, which granted religious freedom to all Christians.
Southern Colonies
Hot climates with fertile soil and agriculture-based economies
The Carolinas - Royal colonies
Restoration - King Charles restored his monarchy after a brief rule from a puritan republic.
To thank nobles for their help, Charles granted nobles the Carolinas.
South Carolina - Lots of rice-growing plantations with slave labor
North Carolina - Fewer large plantations and slavery.
Georgia - Royal Colony
Georgia was a debtor colony and a buffer between English colonies and Spanish Florida
James Oglethorpe - Founded Savannah in 1733
Self Rule
Self-rule and democracy began early in the colonies.
The distance between the UK and the slowed-down communication.
House of Burgesses - Virginia 1619, America's 1st representative assembly, which was dominated by elite planters (We all start somewhere, ok)
New England had town meetings and elections through the Mayflower Compact
2.4 Transatlantic Trade
Triangular trade
Europe sent manufactured goods and guns to Africa, Africa sent slaves to North America, and America sent Tobacco, Sugar, and Indigo to Europe. Europe also sent horses and disease to North America. Africa sent Gold, Ivory, and Indigo to Europe. Africa sent Rum to North America.
By the 17th century, the Royal African Company had monopolized the slave trade. However, due to the overdemand, the monopoly ended, and English Merchants entered the trade.
Mercantilism
Policy of maximizing exports and minimizing imports.
British colonies could only trade with Britain. All colonial imports must pass through Britain, and specific goods like Tobacco can only be exported to Britain.
This led to the Navigation Acts (Established a Mercantilist policy).
Positive: Aided ship building, provided tobacco with a monopoly, and provided military protection.
Negative: Limited colonial development. Colonies couldn’t manufacture their goods, and since they were forced to sell to England, they were forced to sell at lower prices.
Trade with Natives led to cultural exchange.
The Trans-Atlantic trade generated massive amounts of wealth for the elite people, which included merchants, investors, and plantation owners. Additionally, transformed America’s seaports into thriving urban centers.
Salutary Neglect - Lax enforcement of Parliamentary laws. Due to distance, ongoing civil wars in the UK, and corrupt agents.
The crown occasionally attempted to overcome resistance to its trade laws: It revoked the Massachusetts Bay Charter because of smuggling activity.
Determined to increase royal control, James formed several New England colonies into a puppet.
2.5 Interactions Between American Indians and Europeans
Spain introduced the Caste system which recorded people based on their racial ancestry and due to the Spanish perspective that the native americans were really only good for labor and religious conversion.
Bacon's Rebellion highlighted class differences, repressive policies, and royal resistance.
Led by Nathaniel Bacon against the VA government, it was caused by grievances over representation, Native policies, and inequality. While initially successful, it was eventually suppressed. Jamestown was burned to the ground.
Effect - Bacon's rebellion led to a shift from servitude to slavery. Landowners preferred owning workers who wouldn't rebel. Led to a massive increase in the Slave Population.
New England Confederation
4 New England Colonies formed a military alliance.
Though ended by the Royal Crown, it was the first example of colony unification.
Metacom's War (King Philip's War)
Won by New England with help of confederation of states.
In response to encroaching land, the chief of Wampanoag Metacom (King Phillip) united many southern New England tribes. In retaliation, the British called on their allies the Mohawk Indians who responded by ambushing and killing metacom. This led to many deaths and the end of Native resistance in New England.
Pueblo Revolt - The Pueblo revolted against Spain's oppressive rule and religious conversion.
They won - First example of beating a European power (Spain came back and defeated them later)
2.6 Slavery in the British Colonies
Slavery exploded for two reasons:
1) Natives escaped too easily.
2) Indentured servants were too few
Indentured servants
Workers owned by masters, under contract, usually for 4-7 years. After: Freedom.
Headright system
To attract immigrants, Virginia offered 50 acres of land to immigrants who paid for their passage to America
1619 1st Slaves arrived from English Ships
Laws were passed to make Slavery permanent and heritable.
This was due to slaves being a dependable workforce, cheap labor, and a decreasing English migration.
Many resisted blended Christianity to create syncretic religions and their own culture, ran away, and went on strikes.
British West Indies:
The greatest portion of African laborers
The word for this race-based slavery is Chattel Slavery. Means the slaves were considered property.
Colonial Slave Laws:
Legally defined African laborers as chattel
Slavery was made a perpetual institution that was passed from one generation to the next
These laws became harsher and harsher
The slaves resisted both covertly and overtly:
Covert Resistance:
Practiced cultural customs from homeland
Maintained belief systems
Spoke native languages
Kept naming practices from home
Slowed the pace of work by breaking tools and damaging crops
Overt Resistance was more focused on violent resistance. The most notable example is the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina. A small group of enslaved men stole weapons from a store and proceeded to kill the white owners of that store. As they marched along the Stono River, more enslaved men joined them, burning plantations to the group and killing more white folks.
2.7 Colonial Society and Culture
Over time, English colonies evolved into a distinct culture unlike any other European country.
Enlightenment: An idea in Europe that emphasized rational thinking over tradition and religious revelation.
John Locke: Introduced the idea of natural rights to the colonists. This was the idea that human beings simply by virtue of existing had rights to life and liberty and property that were given to them by a creator/god.
Enlightenment thinkers emphasized that what is knowable in this world comes to us from our senses and therefore scientific inquiry is where our authority lies. The bible on the other hand claims that what is knowable starts with god and that our authority comes through revelation from god.
Drastic increase in population.
250k in 1701 to 2.5 million in 1775. The biggest shifts were slaves: 28k to 500k.
Mostly due to increased immigration and birth rate.
Europeans sought to escape religious persecution or seek economic opportunity.
Most settled in the Middle and South. New England had little land and was dominated by Puritans.
Africans were the largest demographic group entering America. Mostly, slaves went to the South.
Native Americans got screwed. Colonist- Native conflicts were commonplace. Natives often formed alliances with other tribes or Euro Settlers. The most peaceful relationship was with Quakers.
Colonies shared common languages and diversity.
All colonies permitted religious freedom with some restrictions.
New England/Mass most strict, while the Middle Colonies most tolerant.
Southern class tier: Plantation owners - Small Farm Owners - Landless - Indentured Servants - Slaves
Northern Class Tier: Merchants - Specialists/Artisans - Small Farm Owners - Landless
Property-owning men could vote, and men had unlimited home power
Women had more rights in the South than in the North, as they could inherit property.
With the expanding economy and food supply, people married young and had many children, and they have a better standard of living than in Europe now.
Economy
Due to fertile land and mercantile policies, colonies engaged in agriculture, fishing, and forestry.
New England - Rocky soils and long winters limited people to subsistence farming (Farming just enough food to feed themselves). Logging and shipbuilding industries
Middle colonies - Larger farms. Cash crops. Used indentured servants and hired labor.
Southern Colonies - Slave farms for cash crops. Few but very large plantations. Industry drivers were Tobacco, Timber, and Indigo.
Britain controlled its colonies by limiting the use of money.
Religion
Protestantism was the dominant religion.
New England: Protestants
New York: Dutch, so the church of England
Maryland: Catholics
Pennsylvania: Quakers
Middle Colonies: Anglican
All faced discrimination from each other!
Cultural Life
By the 1700s, colonial life led to the development of arts and education.
Education was best in New England, as they valued religious education. Led to an increase in literate people (Why most Ivies in New England)
1st colonial colleges were sectarian (promoted particular religious doctrine)
John Peter Zenger was charged with criticizing the NY Governor, which was illegal. Zenger was acquitted, which encouraged freedom of the press and criticism of the government.
Politics
Despite their diversity, colonies were still British, as they spoke English, had self-governing communities, common ties (Tobacco or manufacturing), and a similar religion.
However, as time went on, Colonies developed their own culture, and mistrust of the crown increased.
Colonists were eager to move west, favoring salutary neglect, pride in governing themselves, and a more ethnically and religiously diverse population.
Unlike Britain, which desired peace in the West, sometimes enforced regulations, claimed sovereignty over colonies, and was majority white and Protestant.
By 1750, most colonies had similar governing systems to each other (the Governor as an executive with a legislative branch). The Governor was appointed by the Crown or by election.
Democracy was limited to white landowners (like the House of Burgesses), but it was much better than in Europe.
Religious restrictions were declining.
Great Awakening
In the 1730s and 40s, an intense religious movement moved through the colonies.
Because of the Enlightenment, which took away from religion, religious feelings “fought back”
Jonathan Edwards
New England minister and scholar who was well studied in philosophy and natural sciences.
Notable leader of the Awakening. Preached with emotions and emphasized personal faith.
George Whitefield
Traveled to America from England.
Spread Awakening throughout the colonies.
Was so good at preaching that people flocked to hear him.
Old Lights
Traditionalists, conservatives, skeptics of New Lights, and the Upper Class.
New Lights
Supported the Great Awakening, emphasized intense and personal experience as salvation. Diverse
New lights criticized the current church for its emphasis on rituals over individual faith.
Effect - Several new schisms and sects formed. Secularism (Separation of religion and state) and 1st signs of abolitionism (Slavery Bad) formed.
People democratized religion. Before the 1730s, Long intellectual sermons. After the 1730s - Just Say Jesus.
Enlightenment thinkers awakened American colonists to ideas about liberty and rights and democratic government, and then the great awakening created a nationwide movement that truly bound American society together.
Also taught them to resist threats to democracy and so the colonies were slowly experiencing a gradual Anglicanization, which is to say they were becoming more British like in their political communities.
They also began to grow frustrated with the British. Example: Impressment, which was the practice of seizing men against their will and forcing them to serve in the royal navy. The Americans who found themselves oppressed did NOT agree.
Summary
Comparison
New England was predominantly English, while the Middle and Southern Colonies were much more diverse.
New England prioritized ships and fishing, while the Middle Colonies focused on grains, and the Southern Colonies focused on agriculture, specifically indigo and tobacco.
New England was cold and rocky, while the Middle Colonies had fair weather. The Southern Colonies had hot weather that was good for crops.
English colonists were used to the democratic process and representative government, unlike Spain or France.
While the Spanish were mainly Catholic, the English were mainly Protestant
Continuity
Huge religious and ethnic diversity across all the colonies.
Representative government was present in all colonies.
Slavery continued and grew.
Resistance also grew. Started with the Native Americans and followed with Africans.
Change
Settlements in the Americas became permanent.
Gradually, the colonies began growing distant from Britain and developing their own unique identity.
Conflicts with Natives continued, often bloody and violent.
Causation
As a result of the Enlightenment, the First Great Awakening “fought back”.
Due to mercantilist policies, the colonies often exported to Britain solely, yet their economy was growing nicely.
The colonies were slowly experiencing a gradual anglicanization, which is to say they were becoming more British like in their political communities.
They also began to grow frustrated with the British. Example: Impressment, which was the practice of seizing men against their will and forcing them to serve in the royal navy. The Americans who found themselves oppressed did NOT agree. The colonies were increasingly becoming more aware of their natural rights, and soon they didn’t allow these natural rights to be taken away.